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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27050974">A Week After Birth</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/manoutoftimeandquake/pseuds/manoutoftimeandquake'>manoutoftimeandquake</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>In The Weeks That Followed [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Agent Carter (TV), Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Post-Season/Series 07, Time Travel</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 20:02:13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>12,679</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27050974</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/manoutoftimeandquake/pseuds/manoutoftimeandquake</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>This time, Daisy and Sousa aren't the ones inadvertently time travelling to see their friends. Which is a good thing for them, time travelling with a newborn is not recommended.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Alphonso "Mack" Mackenzie/Yo Yo Rodriguez, James "Bucky" Barnes/Sam Wilson, Leo Fitz/Jemma Simmons, Peggy Carter/Steve Rogers, Phil Coulson/Melinda May, Skye | Daisy Johnson/Daniel Sousa</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>In The Weeks That Followed [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1916866</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>157</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Unexpected Guests</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I am aware that I said this would be "another week or so" like a month ago, but hear me out: I wrote three chapters, decided I hated the plot and there was too much Avengers and so I wrote a new one</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The last of the evening sunlight glistened off of Daisy’s engagement ring as she sat on the sofa. It had barely been twenty-four hours since Sousa had proposed to her and she couldn’t stop staring at the ring. Sousa was in the nursery, settling Pippa down for the night, or at least until she next woke up. Daisy was beginning to doze off where she was sat on the sofa when she heard a knock at the door.</p><p>She let out a slight sigh as she stood from the sofa. “I’ll get it.”</p><p>“What?” Sousa called back.</p><p>“There’s someone at the door,” Daisy replied.</p><p>“Really? At this time of night? Do they know we have a baby? A week-old baby?”</p><p>Daisy smiled slightly as she made her way over to the door. She opened the door and did a double-take when she saw who was stood in front of her. “Peggy? Steve? What are you doing here?”</p><p>“Daisy, hi, it’s good to see you,” Peggy greeted. “Can we come in?”</p><p>Daisy stepped back to let Peggy and Steve into the apartment. “How did you get here?”</p><p>“We don’t know,” Steve replied.</p><p>“We were working with Howard in his lab when he left the room for a moment and something went wrong with one of his experiments. There was a burst of energy that threw us backwards and then we woke up outside your front door,” Peggy explained as the three sat down on the sofas.</p><p>Daisy noticed Steve was looking at her. “Is something wrong?”</p><p>“When did you two get engaged?” Steve asked.</p><p>Daisy lifted her hand up, realising that he had been staring at her engagement ring. “Just last night. It still feels so weird to call him my fiancé instead of my boyfriend.” She stared down at the ring. “I couldn’t be happier right now.”</p><p>“Looks like you two had a good month,” Steve commented.</p><p>“Month?” Daisy asked.</p><p>“Yeah, it’s been a month since we last saw you,” Steve replied.</p><p>“I think it’s been more than a month for Daisy and Daniel,” Peggy said. She looked over at Daisy. “I’ve seen that look on your face on every other one of my friends who just had a baby. And all the congratulations card kind of give it away. How old are they?”</p><p>“She’s a week old,” Daisy answered. “Daniel’s just putting her to bed right now. Daniel, shit. I need to go tell him about this. We’re both exhausted as it is, I don’t want him thinking he’s started hallucinating.”</p><p>“That’s probably a good idea,” Peggy replied.</p><p>Daisy shot her a smile as she stood from the sofa and made her way out of the room. She opened the door to the nursery and slipped inside.</p><p>Sousa looked up at Daisy when she walked into the room. “Hey, you didn’t need to come in here, I’ve almost got her to sleep,” he said.</p><p>Daisy closed the door behind her as quietly as she could, but the handle on the door was old and made a clicking noise as the door shut. The two new parents cringed and looked over at the almost sleeping baby, hoping that she would stay settled.</p><p>They were wrong. Pippa started to cry, causing both Daisy and Sousa to let out a sigh.</p><p>“My turn,” Daisy said as she crossed the room and picked up their daughter. She shushed the little girl as she held her close to her chest. “She’s not hungry, is she? She can’t be, I just fed her before you tried to put her down.” She lifted Pippa up to give her a quick sniff. “She doesn’t need changing.”</p><p>“She probably just wants to be held,” Sousa replied. “Good thing her parents are more than willing to go along with that. What did you come in here for?”</p><p>“You might want to sit down first,” Daisy answered. Sousa didn’t respond, just sat down on the rocking chair in the corner of the room. “So remember how a few months ago we ended up back in the fifties? Yeah, well, it looks like something similar happened to Peggy and Steve and now they’re stuck here.”</p><p>“Wait, what?”</p><p>“They’re out in the living room right now,” Daisy continued. “I came in here to tell you so you wouldn’t freak out when you saw them. Are you okay?”</p><p>“You know what? After everything that we’ve seen with S.H.I.E.L.D., sure, why not?” Sousa replied.</p><p>Daisy smiled. “Babe, I get what you’re saying, but I think that’s the sleep deprivation talking.”</p><p>“Partially, yes,” Sousa said. “So they’re waiting out there for us?”</p><p>“They are,” Daisy replied. “It’s only been a month for them, but Peggy very quickly figured out that it had been longer for us. They know about Pippa. Well, Peggy does, I think Steve is a little confused, he didn’t know I was pregnant back in the fifties.”</p><p>“Let’s go see them then,” Sousa said. He stood from the chair and opened the door for Daisy to walk through, still holding Pippa.</p><p>Peggy and Steve looked over at the family and smiled.</p><p>“I hope you don’t mind, but I was just catching Steve up with what you told me in the fifties,” Peggy explained.</p><p>“I am so sorry I let you go on that mission in my place,” Steve said. “You were already stressed out enough, you shouldn’t’ve had to deal with worrying about him being missing while you were expecting a child together on top of all of that.”</p><p>“That wasn’t your fault,” Sousa replied. “I didn’t even know at the time either, not that Daisy hadn’t repeatedly tried to tell me.”</p><p>“And although the time when I didn’t what was happening with him was awful, he made it back alive and now we’ve got Pippa and we’re getting married,” Daisy added.</p><p>“I’m really happy for the two of you,” Peggy said as she glanced over at Steve. “But we need to find some way of getting home.”</p><p>Steve nodded. “S.H.I.E.L.D. were able to get you two and Kora back home, maybe they’d be able to get us back home again.”</p><p>“That would work,” Daisy agreed. “I can’t see why Mack would say no to helping you after all you did for us.”</p><p>“We’ll go in the morning,” Sousa suggested. “Until then, I apologise for the baby that’s going keep waking you up all night, but we’ve had a week of it already.”</p><p>“And we don’t have a guest bedroom, just the sofas,” Daisy added.</p><p>“That’s fine, you’ve already done more than enough just by letting us stay here,” Peggy replied. “We’ll see you in the morning.”</p><p>Daisy smiled at her. “We’ll see you then.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. The Lighthouse</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Even before she opened her eyes, Daisy could tell she was being watched. “I can feel you staring at me,” Daisy sleepily muttered, her voice slightly muffled from her face being pressed into the pillow. She yawned as she rolled over and stretched, nearly hitting Sousa in the face as she did. “Has Pippa woken up yet?”</p><p>“I haven’t heard her,” Sousa replied. “I’ll go check on her.”</p><p>Daisy shook her head. “I’ll go check on her, you go check on our guests.”</p><p>She reluctantly dragged herself from her bed and made her way to Pippa’s nursery, still exhausted from having to get up every couple of hours to tend to Pippa. The little girl was awake, but not crying. Daisy smiled at her daughter as she made her way across the room to Pippa’s cot.</p><p>“Hey there little one,” Daisy greeted warmly. She reached down and picked the baby up. “I know we were meant to have the rest of the week as just the three of us, but some of Mommy and Daddy’s friends need our help.” She let out a slight sigh. “I knew we were going to go back to work eventually, but I didn’t think it would be this soon. Or this soon after having you.”</p><p>Daisy heard the sound of someone knocking at the door to the nursery. She looked over to see Peggy. “Sorry, I don’t mean to interrupt, but Steve’s making some breakfast for everyone, and I was just wondering if you wanted some tea,” she said.</p><p>“Yeah, thanks,” Daisy replied. “There should be a load of tea bags in the cupboard above the kettle. Jemma made sure she had the supplies to make a decent cup of tea at everyone’s homes.”</p><p>“Are you saying she just turned up one day with a kettle and some tea?” Peggy asked. “Is she British?”</p><p>“Yes, and yes,” Daisy replied.</p><p>“I like the sound of her,” Peggy said.</p><p>Daisy let out a slight laugh. “Oh, she is going to be so happy when I tell you said that. She is a massive fan; she probably won’t ever stop talking about it.”</p><p>Peggy smiled and looked down at the baby in Daisy’s arms. “She’s beautiful. Although, it does feel strange that to me, just a month ago you were barely even showing, and now you have a daughter.”</p><p>“Honestly, it feels weird for me as well, and I had months to prepare for it,” Daisy replied. In her arms, Pippa started fussing.</p><p>“I’ll leave you to deal with her,” Peggy said before leaving the room.</p><p>Daisy sat down in the rocking chair in the corner of the nursery as she fed Pippa. Once she was done, she changed her daughter and walked out into the living room. She placed the baby in her bassinet before sinking down onto the sofa.</p><p>Steve appeared next to her almost immediately, a plate of food in hand. “Here you go,” he said as he passed her the food. “And thanks again for letting us stay with you.”</p><p>“It was the least we could do after everything you did to help us,” Daisy replied.</p><p>Sousa came and sat down next to her as Steve made her way back towards the kitchen. “Hey, how’s she doing?”</p><p>“Pretty good so far, hopefully, she’ll sleep most of the car ride this morning, considering the fact that she was up for most of the night,” Daisy said.</p><p>“You’re just saying that because you want to sleep in the car.”</p><p>Daisy let out a slight laugh. “You got me there. I would kill for even ten minutes more sleep, I’m that desperate.”</p><p>“Well, we’re doing better than yesterday,” Sousa said. “Yesterday you said that you’d kill for another five minutes sleep.”</p><p>Daisy let out a slight groan. “Maybe me from yesterday had a point, even five more minutes would be nice.”</p><p>Sousa laughed slightly at his fiancé. “I packed a bag for the two of us, just enough for a couple of days in case we need to stay. I’ll go sort out a bag for Pippa after breakfast.”</p><p>Daisy shook her head. “I’ll do it.” She quickly finished her breakfast and put her empty plate to one side. “I’ll leave her with you while I get changed and sort out her bag.”</p><p>“Okay, love you.”</p><p>“Love you too.”</p><p>***</p><p>Sousa was sat at the computer when Daisy walked out of the nursery, Pippa’s bag packed and ready to go. She saw him pick a sheet of paper of the printer and carefully placed it in the suitcase he’d packed for the two of them. As he moved the sheet of paper, she could see that it was a photo of the three of them, the first one that had been taken after Pippa was born. She was only a few hours old and sleeping soundly in her mother’s arms. Sousa was sat behind Daisy on her hospital bed, her back pressed up against his chest as they both looked down at their new-born daughter.</p><p>She frowned as she watched him pack the photo. “Daniel, why-”</p><p>“We’re ready to go,” Peggy said as she Steve walked out from the bedroom, interrupting Daisy before she could ask Sousa about the photo. The other couple had changed into more modern clothes that Daisy and Sousa had leant them. Daisy’s clothes suited Peggy, although Sousa’s clothes were a rather snug fit on Steve.</p><p>“I’ll grab our bags,” Sousa said. He grabbed the suitcase and took Pippa’s bag from Daisy as she went to put Pippa in her carrier. “You ready to go?”</p><p>Daisy nodded. “Yeah, let’s go.”</p><p>***</p><p>Both Daisy and Pippa ended up sleeping for most of the one hour drive. She woke up just as they turned off onto the private road leading to the Lighthouse and approached the guardhouse.</p><p>The bored-looking guard looked up as they approached. He frowned when he saw Sousa. “Agent Sousa, we weren’t expecting you back so soon.” He looked past Sousa and spotted Steve in the passenger’s seat of the car. “Is… is that?”</p><p>“It is,” Sousa replied. “Can you just let Director Mackenzie that we’re here?”</p><p>“Uh, yes sir,” the guard replied. The barrier opened and they drove into the carpark outside the Lighthouse.</p><p>“Well, this is nice,” Peggy said as they got out of the car, looking up at the Lighthouse. She looked over at Sousa and grinned. “And I’m guessing you don’t get as many people dropping in as when you were at the Auerbach.”</p><p>“The fake theatrical agency that the SSR hid behind in LA in the forties?” Daisy asked as she unclipped Pippa’s carrier from the car seat.</p><p>“The very one,” Sousa answered. “And we don’t get that many people, just the occasional hiker that pretends they didn’t see the private property signs on the perimeter fence.” He and Steve made their way to the boot of the car and grabbed their bags. The group made their way to the entrance of the Lighthouse. Daisy typed in a code and scanned her fingerprint by the door. It opened and the group made their way into the large lift that took them deeper into the base.</p><p>Peggy looked around as they went down. “This is different to what we’ve got in the fifties. Very different.”</p><p>Mack was waiting for them when they got out of the lift. He stared Steve and Peggy down for a few moments before turning to look at Daisy and Sousa. “Do I even want to know?”</p><p>“They just turned up at our apartment,” Daisy replied. “And they need help getting home.”</p><p>“My office,” Mack said. The group wordlessly followed Mack through the base until they reached his office. He shut the door behind them. “Sorry about that, didn’t want to discuss what we’re going to do with everyone else listening in. I’d like to keep the number of people that know we’ve got a couple of time travellers to a minimum.” He sat down behind his desk. “I’ll call in Fitzsimmons, they’re the only people that understand how to calibrate the time drive. And I’ll call in May and Coulson as well, she’s our best pilot and she’s the best person to help you get back.”</p><p>“And Coulson?” Daisy asked.</p><p>Mack smiled. “Because if he found out that we’d had Captain America at the Lighthouse and I hadn’t called him in, he would never let it go.” He looked over at Peggy and Steve. “You can stay at the base until we’re ready to take you back. The bunks that the team use are in a part of the base that’s further away from the areas the rest of the agency uses, so you’ll able to stay there without people realising that you’re here.”</p><p>“Thank you for this Director Mackenzie,” Peggy replied.</p><p>Mack waved it off. “It’s nothing, and please, call me Mack. And, if I can be a little bit unprofessional for a moment, I have to say that it’s a huge honour to have you here Director Carter.”</p><p>“Please, call me Peggy,” she replied. “And thank you again for letting us stay here while you work to get us home. And for helping us get home in the first place.”</p><p>“You’re S.H.I.E.L.D., just as much as any of us. And S.H.I.E.L.D. will always have your back.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Mothers' Group</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“It’s okay honey, go back to sleep,” Daisy muttered, rocking Pippa slightly as she paced back and forth. At first, she had stayed with the group in one of the common rooms, but Pippa had woken up and started to fuss. She’d taken her to her and Sousa’s old bunk to see if the quieter setting would help. So far, she’d had no luck getting Pippa to settle down. She’d fed and changed her and was now pacing up and down the room with Pippa in her arms. She’d been at it for what felt like an eternity and was beginning to lose her mind.</p><p>“Are you okay?” someone asked. Daisy looked over and saw Simmons stood in the doorway.</p><p>“I will be when she eventually decides to calm down,” Daisy replied. She let out a slight sigh and turned to face Simmons again as the other woman sat down on the chair at the desk. “Does this ever get any easier?”</p><p>Simmons let out a slight laugh. “It doesn’t, but they’re worth it.”</p><p>Daisy nodded. “At some point, I lost count of the amount of books, and articles, and blogs and everything else I read to try and get ready for being a mom. But as soon as she arrived, it just felt like I knew nothing.”</p><p>“You’re doing alright so far, she’s already settled down,” Simmons reassured, nodding at Pippa. Daisy looked down at her daughter and saw that she was half asleep. She let out a small sigh of relief and crashed down onto the bed, next to where she’d already put Pippa’s carrier. She and Simmons were sat in quiet for a few more moments before Pippa finally fell asleep. “See, you’re doing great.” She smiled down at the little girl. “How are you doing?”</p><p>Daisy sighed and leant back against the pillows. “Exhausted, mainly.” She ran a finger down Pippa’s cheek. “She’s only a week old and we’ve already gotten dragged back into S.H.I.E.L.D. drama.”</p><p>“It will all be over soon enough,” Simmons replied. “And then everything’s back to normal. And I take it you’ve been enjoying normal.”</p><p>Daisy frowned slightly. “I think so.”</p><p>“Daisy, what’s wrong?”</p><p>“Nothing’s wrong,” she answered. “And that’s the problem, everything is so good at the moment for me and Daniel, what with Pippa and getting engaged… I just feel like I’m waiting for something to go wrong. I’ve never had a home life like this before and it still feels so strange.”</p><p>“Have you tried talking to him about it?” Simmons asked. Daisy shook her head. “Maybe you should. If you’re worried about something going wrong in your home life, then maybe talking to him about it would help, make sure that you’re both on the same page with everything.”</p><p>“You’re probably right,” Daisy replied. “No, you’re definitely right, you normally are with these things. I’ll talk to him later.”</p><p>Simmons raised an eyebrow. “You promise?”</p><p>“I promise.”</p><p>***</p><p>The two had been talking for almost an hour when someone came to find them. Daisy looked up when she heard the sound of footsteps heading their way and saw Sousa stick his head around the door. He smiled when he saw her and Pippa.</p><p>“Hey, I was just looking for you,” he said as he made his way into the bunk. “Coulson and May have just arrived.”</p><p>Daisy sighed and stood up. “We’d better go, they’re probably going to want to hear our side of the story.” Pippa started to wake up and fuss slightly in Daisy’s arms.</p><p>“I’ll let everyone else know you’re both on your way,” Simmons said as she walked past Sousa. She paused before she left the room and mouthed “talk to him” to Daisy over Sousa’s shoulder. Sousa realised that she was still there and turned to look at her. Simmons just smiled innocently at him before walking out of the room.</p><p>“Do you want me to take her?” Sousa offered. Daisy nodded and handed the baby over to her fiancé. Pippa almost instantly settling down.</p><p>“Of course she calms down as soon as she’s with you,” Daisy said with a roll of her eyes. “It took me forever to get her to settle down earlier. Where’ve you been?”</p><p>“I was helping Kora go over flight plans for the S.W.O.R.D. mission next month,” he answered. “Sorry, I should’ve been helping with her.”</p><p>“It’s fine,” Daisy replied. “So, she’s still planning on going?”</p><p>“Looks like it,” he said. He smiled down at Pippa. “Why she would want to leave her adorable little niece and go back to space?” He looked over at Daisy and frowned.</p><p>“What?” Daisy asked.</p><p>“Are you okay? You look… not yourself,” he said.</p><p>“I’m fine,” Daisy snapped. “Why does everyone keep asking me that?” She sighed slightly. “Look, let’s just go meet the others.” She and Sousa walked out of their bunk and began to make their way towards the landing bay. Simmons was right, she thought as they walked, she needed to talk with him.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Old Friends</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>May descended on Daisy and Sousa as soon as she saw the family. “How’s my little granddaughter?” she asked as she approached.</p><p>Daisy rolled her eyes but didn’t protest as May took Pippa from Sousa’s arms. “She’s fine, and so are we, thanks for asking.”</p><p>“It’s good to see you both,” May said. She reached over to hug Daisy, careful to not squish Pippa between the two of them.</p><p>“Is she bothering you?” Coulson asked as he caught up with May.</p><p>“Hey AC,” Daisy greeted, hugging him as well. “You couldn’t get here quick enough when we told you Captain America was here, could you?”</p><p>“Please, he isn’t even my favourite superhero anymore,” Coulson replied. “I was just excited to see you three again, we haven’t seen you since you left the hospital.”</p><p>May handed Pippa back over to her father as the group as they made their way towards where the rest of the team were waiting with Peggy and Steve. Fitzsimmons were explaining something when they walked into the room.</p><p>Alya was the first to spot the group. She looked up and grinned. “Grandma Mel!” she yelled as she raced over to May.</p><p>May grinned and bent down to pick the girl up as she crashed into her. “What did we miss?” May asked as she balanced Alya on her hip.</p><p>“We were just telling Captain Rogers and Agent Carter-”</p><p>Peggy cleared her throat and shot a glare at Simmons.</p><p>“Sorry, we were just telling Steve and Peggy that it will take a few hours, possibly until tomorrow morning to fully calibrate the time drive to make sure that we get the correct timeline,” Simmons explained. “It was easier when we rescued Kora, Daisy and Sousa as we could use them as tethers to find the right timeline, but we’ll still be able to locate the correct timeline.”</p><p>“You’re both free to stay here until Fitzsimmons are ready to take you back,” Mack said.</p><p>“Thank you Mack,” Steve replied. “There’s just one thing I was wondering: would it be possible for me to me see some of the other Avengers? Talking with Clint made me realise that I didn’t leave things with my friends here on a good note with the way that I left. Especially Bucky and Sam.”</p><p>“We can call them in,” Mack offered. “If we reach out through the right channels they’ll come.”</p><p>“Thank you,” Steve said. “And sorry if they make a scene.”</p><p>***</p><p>Sam, Bucky, and Wanda walked into the room a few hours later, Wanda stood slightly behind the other two. Bucky glared at his friend when he saw him.</p><p>“Steve Grant Rogers,” he spat out.</p><p>“I can’t believe you have the audacity to show back up in <em>our</em> time after everything that you put us through, leaving like that,” Sam snapped.</p><p>“I didn’t believe it at first,” Wanda said as she moved out from behind the other two. “When S.H.I.E.L.D. called us, I didn’t believe it. But it’s you, it’s actually you.” She made her way over to Steve and hugged him tightly. When she pulled back, Daisy could see she was crying. “I missed you.”</p><p>“I missed you too,” Steve replied.</p><p>“Then. Why. The. Hell. Did. You. Leave?” Wanda demanded each word emphasised with Wanda hitting Steve on the arm.</p><p>“So, these are the Avengers,” Sousa said. He leant across Daisy to speak to Coulson. “Are they always like this?”</p><p>“Yes, one hundred per cent yes,” he answered.</p><p>“Oh my god, is that Quake?” Wanda asked. She turned to look at Steve. “Clint told us that you helped her and a couple of other S.H.I.E.L.D. agents get home a few months, but how did you end up here? Did S.H.I.E.L.D. do something?”</p><p>“Hey, we didn’t do anything,” Daisy defended. “They just turned up at our apartment.”</p><p>“And we’re both taking a break from S.H.I.E.L.D. for a while,” Sousa added, pointing at Pippa, who was beginning to fall asleep again in Daisy’s arms.</p><p>“She’s right, S.H.I.E.L.D. didn’t do anything. Steve and I were in ’55 one moment, the next we’re outside Daisy and Daniel’s front door. It was late, so they offered to let us stay with them until we came here in the morning,” Peggy explained.</p><p>“Thank you for helping them, and sorry for accusing you of doing something ridiculous to them,” Wanda said to Daisy and Sousa before turning back to Steve. “But seriously, I’m so glad you’re back.” Steve looked to the floor, unable to meet her gaze. “What is it?”</p><p>“We came here to ask for help to get home,” Steve explained. “We’re not staying here.”</p><p>Wanda let out a small sigh. “Fine,” she replied. She looked at Bucky and Sam. “Your turn.”</p><p>Bucky wasn’t looking at Steve. Instead, he was looking at Sousa where he was sat on the sofa. “I’m pretty sure Hydra killed you in the fifties.”</p><p>“Yeah, I get that a lot,” Sousa replied.</p><p>Sam started laying into Steve, Bucky quickly joining in. The three men were soon having a full-on argument in the middle of the room, everyone else scattered around the edges of the room.</p><p>Wanda made her way over to Daisy. “Clint and Laura asked me to give you this,” she said as she handed a small piece of paper to Daisy. “It’s Bobbi Morse’s phone number.”</p><p>Daisy’s eyes widened in shock. “Wait, what?”</p><p>“Since she left S.H.I.E.L.D. with Hunter she reached out to Clint, she was good friends with Clint when they both worked on S.H.I.E.L.D. missions together,” Wanda explained. “When I told them that we were coming here, he asked me to make sure I passed this on to you.” She paused for a moment. “She misses you, they both do.”</p><p>“Thank you, Wanda, thank you so much,” Daisy said as she looked down at the number on the paper. She looked up and smiled at Wanda. “I don’t know how to explain how much this means.”</p><p>Wanda waved her off. “It’s fine.” She looked back over at the arguing men. “They’re probably going to be like that for a while. And this is actually kinda normal by our standards, which is pretty telling.”</p><p>“Being an Avenger sounds kinda crazy,” Daisy said.</p><p>“To be fair, S.H.I.E.L.D. isn’t much better,” Sousa added.</p><p>“We aren’t that bad,” Daisy defended.</p><p>“Remind me, how did we meet?” Sousa jokingly asked.</p><p>“I broke into your office at Area 51 in the fifties, pretended to be a CIA agent and then locked you in a cell,” Daisy replied. She screwed her nose up as she caught a whiff of a foul smell. “I’m going to go change Pippa, I’ll be back before dinner.” She pressed a quick kiss to Sousa’s lips as she stood to walk from the room. “Love you.”</p><p>“Love you too.”</p><p>Daisy threw a glance back over her shoulder as she walked out of the room and saw Peggy making her way to sit with Sousa and tried to ignore the tug of jealousy she felt when she saw the closeness and familiarity between the two old friends.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. The Story Of The EMP Arrow</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I've been rewatching Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Agent Carter and I just rewatched the episode with the musical number and it 100 times funnier after Endgame and season 7</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>By the time Daisy made her way back to the group, they’d moved to another room with a large table for them all to eat around. Yo-Yo and Flint had been out to get food for everyone. There were several large pizzas on the table, as well as a few tacos; despite having been in this time for almost two years, Flint still insisted on having tacos as often as possible.</p><p>Sousa smiled when he saw her walk in and indicated to the empty seat next to him. He pulled the chair out as she made her way over to him. She sat next to him, Pippa beginning to fall asleep where she was being held pressed against her mother’s chest.</p><p>“Did I miss much?” she asked as she sat down.</p><p>“Just more of the Avengers bickering,” Sousa replied. “Well, Sam, Bucky and Steve were, Wanda’s been updating someone called Peter over text for half of the time.”</p><p>Daisy turned her attention back to the arguing superheroes. They’d calmed down considerably since she’d last seen them, but there was still an obvious tension amongst the group.</p><p>“So, how’s everyone else doing?” Steve asked.</p><p>“Peter got framed murder last year,” Wanda replied in a tone that was too casual given what she had just said.</p><p>Steve blinked at her in shock a few times. “Which Peter? Please say Quill, <em>please</em> say Quill.”</p><p>“Parker,” Sam answered. “He lives at the Compound right now, well, the buildings at the Compound that didn’t get blown up by Thanos, because he’s still technically a fugitive, but Secretary Ross eventually agreed to leave him alone so long as he doesn’t leave the Compound. That’s why we took so long to get here, we had to wait for Rhodey to get there so he could babysit.”</p><p>“I don’t get why, he’s nearly eighteen, he can be left home alone,” Wanda said.</p><p>“And what happens when he gets scared watching something on Netflix and gets stuck to the ceiling?” Bucky asked.</p><p>Wanda thought for a second and then nodded. “Good point, that does happen way too often.”</p><p>“So, it’s just the four of you at the Compound at the moment?” Steve asked.</p><p>Wanda nodded. “Yeah, life at the Compound at the moment is like two gay dads and their disaster superpowered adopted orphaned children,” she joked. Sam let out a laugh and Bucky choked on his drink slightly. “I mean, I am in my twenties, but my point still stands.”</p><p>“Yeah, that’s fair,” Sam replied.</p><p>“Wait, is she being serious?” Steve asked. He pointed between Sam and Bucky. “You two are…”</p><p>“Yes, we’re dating, we have been since a few months after you left,” Bucky replied. “We really bonded while drunkenly complaining about you leaving.”</p><p>Kora looked between the superheroes. “You people are weird and should seek professional help. I mean, I thought we were bad, but you guys have issues.”</p><p>“I thought that should’ve been obvious after I told you about what happened when I told you about what happened with Clint,” Coulson said.</p><p>“What <em>did</em> happen?” Wanda asked. “Every time we ask, he just gets angry and doesn’t want to talk about it.”</p><p>Coulson let out a slightly nervous laugh. “Yeah, that didn’t go brilliantly.”</p><p>A few of the other S.H.I.E.L.D. agents started giggling as they remembered the story he had told them.</p><p>“Come on AC, you have to tell them,” Daisy said.</p><p>Coulson rolled his eyes. “So, by the time that I made it to Iowa, Bruce, who I had already seen a couple of days before, had already called him and told him what was going on. I pulled up outside the house and he was waiting there with a bow and arrows.”</p><p>“I hate where this is going,” Steve said.</p><p>“I tried to explain, I think some grovelling may have happened,” Coulson continued. “Bruce had also apparently told him that I was an LMD and so he shot an EMP arrow at me. But it turns out that after what happened at Area 51, Simmons made me EMP proof. So it didn’t knock me out, but it did hurt. Also, his eldest two kids were watching from the window.”</p><p>“Yeah, that sounds like Cooper and Lila, they like to be involved in Avengers’ drama,” Wanda said.</p><p>“The worst part was that the EMP fried Lola,” Coulson complained. The S.H.I.E.L.D. agents around the table cringed at the thought; they knew how much Lola meant to him. “After a bit begging for forgiveness, he ended up helping me get Lola working again. We got a chance to catch up and it was nice to talk to someone from the old days. Not that I don’t like being here with this new version of S.H.I.E.L.D., but we ended up talking about Nat quite a bit and… it was good to talk to about her again now that she’s gone.”</p><p>Steve nodded. “We all miss her,” he replied, and for once, none of the other Avengers made any attempt to start an argument with him.</p><p>***</p><p>Daisy and Sousa were the first two people to leave after dinner, wanting to settle Pippa down and get some sleep before she woke them up again. Daisy was sat on the bed, absentmindedly playing with her hair as she watched her fiancé put their daughter into the travel cot they’d brought with them.</p><p>“She’s sound asleep. Don’t know how long that’s going to last, but for now, she’s asleep,” he said. He had a soft smile on his face when he turned around, although it was quickly replaced by a look on concern when he saw how she was sat. “Is something wrong?”</p><p>Daisy took a deep breath in and looked him in the eye. “I think we need to talk.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>The next chapter is a bigger one... and an emotional one</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. The Photo</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>In this house, we love emotional honesty and acknowledging characters' emotional issues *cough* especially after 5x14 *cough*</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Sousa seemed confused. “Okay, we can talk.” He moved over to sit next to her on the bed. “What’s wrong?”</p><p>Daisy couldn’t meet his gaze, instead looking down at her hands as she anxiously fiddled with her fingers. “I saw the picture, the one of the three of us the day she was born.”</p><p>“Okay… is this what’s been bothering you all day?”</p><p>Daisy nodded. “I know why you printed it off.”</p><p>“You do? And you’re okay with it?” Sousa asked.</p><p>“No! Of course I’m not!” she cried out. She stood from the bed and began to angrily pace up and down the room. “We’ve just had a baby, for god’s sake Daniel, I don’t want you to leave.”</p><p>Sousa’s mouth was gaping open in shock when she finally brought herself to look at him. “Leave? Wait, what are you talking about?”</p><p>“You changed your mind, and that’s fine,” Daisy answered. “People change their minds. I get it, you want to go home.”</p><p>“Honey,” Sousa started to say in a gentle tone, worry clearly beginning to creep into his voice. “I really don’t know what you’re talking about right now.”</p><p>“You’re going to go back with Steve and Peggy when they return to the fifties,” Daisy explained. “And you’re taking that photo because you want something to remember us by when you get there.”</p><p>“Daisy, no, that’s not what’s happening right now,” he insisted.</p><p>“Then what is, Daniel?” Daisy demanded.</p><p>“I just wanted to send a letter to my Mom, so she knows I’m alive, that I’m happy and that she has a granddaughter and will soon have an amazing daughter-in-law,” Sousa explained.</p><p>Daisy was genuinely shocked by his response. She froze to the spot in shock as she just stared at him. “Wait, what are you talking about?”</p><p>Sousa stood from the bed and took a couple of cautious steps towards her, only for her to take a couple of steps back. “Daisy, I promise you I’m not leaving. I want to stay here. With you and with Pippa.”</p><p>Daisy shook her head a few times. “I… I… I don’t understand.”</p><p>“I won’t lie and say that there isn’t a part of me that wants to run back to the fifties and see my Mom again. But it’s only a small part of me. The rest of me wants to stay here with you, with our daughter. And whenever I see either of you, that part of me that wants to go gets smaller and smaller.” He reached out to try and cup her cheek, but she flinched away from him. He let out a small sigh before continuing. “I just thought that if I were able to get word back to my Mom that I was okay, that small part of me would go away.”</p><p>“I’m sorry,” Daisy muttered, her voice shaking slightly.</p><p>“You don’t have anything to be sorry about,” Sousa replied.</p><p>“No, I do,” Daisy insisted. “I just accused you of wanting to leave me and our daughter when all you wanted to do was send a letter to your mother.” She tried to wipe away a few tears that began to form in the corner of her eyes. “For god’s sake, you proposed to me two days ago, of course you don’t want to leave. I am so, so sorry.”</p><p>Sousa stepped forward again and wrapped his arms around her. She didn’t try and push him away this time. He held her tight against him as she cried into his chest. He spoke after a few moments. “Daisy, you don’t have to apologise for how you feel, especially right now. Our lives are kind of insane right now; we have a new-born; we’ve just gotten engaged and then Peggy and Steve turned up at our apartment and now we’re back at the Lighthouse.” He pulled back from her slightly but kept his hands on her arms as he looked at her. “Is there something else bothering you?” Daisy tried to look away, so he nudged her cheek slightly so that she was looking at him again. Daisy, please just tell me if there’s something wrong, I just wanna help you.”</p><p>“It…,” she started to say before trailing off. “It’s my problem, not yours.”</p><p>Sousa led her back over to the bed and the two sat down. Daisy leant against his side as he clasped her hand tightly in his own. “Honey, please just let me help you. You’ve helped me so much with adapting to this new life in this century, just let me do the same for you.”</p><p>“I… I don’t know, it’s just after everything, after how I grew up, and people leaving the team and then the team breaking up, the thought of someone just wanting to stay here and be by my side without leaving, it doesn’t seem real,” Daisy said as she looked over Pippa and sighed. “I think, for her sake if we want to be the best possible parents for her, we should probably seriously consider therapy. Especially me.”</p><p>Sousa let out a slight laugh. “I think you’re right.” He leant down to kiss her softly. “I love you and our daughter more than anything else in this world, I would never want to leave you and hurt you like that. I know how hard this is for you, but you have to believe me.”</p><p>“I want to believe you,” Daisy replied. “I want nothing more than to trust you completely, believe me. But I don’t know how to trust people. Every time I have, they’ve always ended up breaking that trust somehow. Ward, my parents, Fitz-”</p><p>“Fitz? When did Fitz betray you?” Sousa asked.</p><p>Daisy sucked in a deep, shaky breath. “Remember how I told you that after we went to Deke’s timeline, where the Earth was destroyed? And how scared I was that I was going to quake the Earth apart?” Sousa nodded before Daisy continued. “Well, when we came back from the future, I had an inhibitor in the back of my neck that blocked my powers. I wanted to keep it in because it meant that I wouldn’t be able to quake the Earth part. But I needed to use my powers to help contain the fear dimension. Fitz… he suffered a psychic split because of his past brain injury. He thought that the dark version of him from the Framework was roaming around the base because of the fear dimension, but it was him. He, erm… he drugged me and had me pinned down as he pulled the inhibitor out of my neck.” She wiped away a few of the tears that were now freely falling from her eyes. “But that wasn’t the Fitz you know. It’s weird and complicated and involves time travel, but that wasn’t the Fitz you know, the retired family man.”</p><p>“And what about the rest of the team?”</p><p>“What about them?”</p><p>“What did they do?” he asked.</p><p>“They didn’t agree with what he did, but one by one they started to take his side,” Daisy answered. “Made me feel bad for being angry and hurt by what he’d done to me.”</p><p>“Oh my god,” he muttered.</p><p>“Please don’t bring it up with everyone else,” Daisy begged. “I know how messed up it all sounds, but that was one of the most stressful times of our lives. I mean, we were trying to stop the seemingly inevitable destruction of the Earth, Coulson was dying, and Yo-Yo had just had her arms cut off. No one was acting like themselves at that time. We’ve all moved on from it since then. Please don’t mention it to them.”</p><p>“Did they ever apologise for taking his side like that?”</p><p>Daisy nodded. “Even Fitz. It wasn’t even him that did that, not really, but he hated the thought that he had hurt me in that way.” She looked up at Sousa when he didn’t say anything. “Babe, please say something.”</p><p>“How could they do that to you? Not Fitz, I understand what you mean by it not really being him, but how could the rest of them do that to you.” He tightened his grip on Daisy’s hand as he looked her in the eye. “I will never do anything like that to you. I will <em>always </em>be on your side, through everything,” he promised. He smiled warmly at her. “You don’t have to say anything else. Let’s just go to bed.”</p><p>He pulled the covers back off the bed and turned the light off as she curled up against his side, her head pressed against his chest. He dropped a kiss to the top of her head. “I love you.”</p><p>“I love you too.”</p><p>***</p><p>“What time is it?” Daisy asked as Pippa woke them for the second time that night.</p><p>Sousa squinted at the harsh bright light of his phone screen. “Just gone three.”</p><p>Daisy groaned as she lifted Pippa from her cot. She settled down leaning back against the pillows. She unbuttoned the top of her shirt and Pippa was quick to latch on and start nursing. Daisy let out a sigh and leant her head against Sousa’s shoulder. “About earlier…”</p><p>“Daisy, we don’t need to keep talking about that,” Sousa said.</p><p>“Are you mad at me?” Daisy asked.</p><p>“A little,” Sousa confessed. “But I feel more sorry than anything else.”</p><p>“I don’t need you to pity me.”</p><p>“It’s not pity,” he insisted. “I am genuinely sorry that I haven’t done enough to make you feel like I’m not here to stay, that I’m not going anywhere.”</p><p>“It isn’t your fault that you haven’t been able to work around all of my issues.” Daisy let out a sigh. “God, I’m such a mess.”</p><p>“I have a feeling saying that you’re not a mess is going to make things worse right now, but I love you, mess and all.”</p><p>Daisy let out a slight laugh. “I love you too. And I know you keep saying that it’s fine, but I am so sorry for blowing up at you like I did earlier.”</p><p>“Hey, look at me,” Sousa said. Daisy tilted her head up slightly to look at him. “We’re going to be okay. Us just being together defies the laws of physics. If anyone can work through this, it’s going to be us. You, me, Pippa, we’re going to get through this and we’re going to come out stronger. As a family.”</p><p>Daisy tried to fight back a new round of tears at his words. She reached up and tipped his head slightly so she could lean in to kiss him without disturbing Pippa. She let out a slight sigh as she pulled back. “You said you were mad.”</p><p>“Daisy-”</p><p>“No, you’re right, we can get through this, whatever it is, and we will,” she said. “But we can’t do that if you’re going to keep downplaying your feelings to try and make me feel better. Please, you keep pushing me to talk and not shut you out, you can’t do the same.”</p><p>“I was mad,” he replied. “I know why you said what you said, you were just scared and lashing out, but it still stung. I love both of you more than I can put into words and you accusing me of getting ready to leave you both hurt like hell.” Daisy opened her mouth to say something, but Sousa cut her off. “Please don’t keep apologising over this.”</p><p>“Okay. I’ll stop,” she said. She let out a slight yawn as Pippa finished eating.</p><p>“I’ll take her,” Sousa said. He gently took Pippa from Daisy and stood from the bed. He pressed a quick kiss to the top of her head. “Go back to sleep, I’ve got her.”</p><p>Daisy didn’t complain. She redid her shirt and settled back down under the covers. She had almost fallen back asleep when she heard Sousa say something to her. “What?”</p><p>“I said I’m still going to be here in the morning,” he replied. “I’m not going anywhere.”</p><p>Daisy smiled at him, her earlier worries melting away when she saw the soft look on his face and their small baby resting against his chest. “I know.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>To anyone who thought that Sousa was going to leave, nice to see you have the same trust issues as Daisy</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Send A Picture</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>By the time Daisy made it back to their bunk from the bathroom, Sousa had finished writing the letter.</p><p>“You didn’t use the typewriter,” she teased.</p><p>“I didn’t have time to pack it. Besides, I thought that by writing it by hand she’d recognise the handwriting and know it was really me,” he explained. He held the letter out to her. “Do you want to read it?”</p><p>Daisy shook her head. “I don’t think that I deserve to after last night.”</p><p>Sousa put the letter back down and made his way over to her. “Daisy, you can’t keep punishing yourself for being scared of losing the people you love.”</p><p>Daisy smiled up at him. “What did I do to deserve you?”</p><p>“You don’t have to do anything to deserve being loved,” he replied. “Also, you kidnapped me.”</p><p>Daisy rolled her eyes and leant up to kiss him. “I’ve got Pippa, you go clean up before we see Peggy and Steve off.”</p><p>“They’re leaving soon?”</p><p>“I saw Simmons on my way back,” Daisy explained. “They’ve almost got the time drive fully calibrated and they’ll be ready to leave in a couple of hours. You sure-”</p><p>“I’m not going anywhere.”</p><p>“Other than the bathroom.”</p><p>“Agent Johnson are you saying I stink?” he teased.</p><p>“You said it, Agent Sousa, you said it not me,” she replied. She kissed him quickly once more. “Go, I got this.”</p><p>“I meant what I said about reading the letter,” Sousa said as he grabbed his bathroom bag. “You can read it if you want to.”</p><p>Daisy smiled at him as she watched him leave the room. She checked on Pippa before sitting down and picking up the letter.</p><p>
  <em>Dear Mom,</em>
</p><p>
  <em>I know this letter is going to be very strange, given that to you I died just over a month ago. But for me, it’s been almost two years since I last saw you. It’s very complicated but a group of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents from the future were in 1955. They knew I was mean to die that day and the only way to save me was to fake my death and take me with them. I’ve been living with them in the twenty-first century since. Life here is very different than in the fifties, but it’s good. Better than good, actually, life has been amazing. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>I know that if you’re reading this letter, then that means Peggy has been able to get it back to you, which means you’ll know how she got the letter and that she was able to come back to the fifties and that I would have been able to also. But even if I wanted to, I couldn’t. You see, I met this girl. Her name is Daisy Johnson, and she is amazing. She’s one of the agents that saved my life and she’s the reason that I stayed with the team. I was going to leave the team when we were in the seventies, but something happened to me and Daisy and I knew then that I was where I needed to be. The last couple of years with her have been the best years of my life. I don’t think I can put into words how much I love her. She and our daughter are the greatest things to have ever happened to me.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Oh yeah, congratulations, you have a granddaughter, Pippa May Johnson-Sousa. I enclosed a photo with this letter, it’s of me and Daisy the day Pippa was born. As of writing this, she is only eight days old and I would do anything for her. And that’s why I’m not coming back. She and her mother mean everything to me, and I could never leave them.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>I wanted to let you know that I have a life, one that I love and people who I love and who love me back. Me and Daisy are getting some time in the near future, yes, me and Daisy weren’t married when we had Pippa, but things are different in this time (I got to be in the room when Pippa was born!) and people often have children before getting married. I proposed to Daisy a few days after Pippa was born and although we haven’t had time to start with much wedding planning yet, I want you to know that I will keep you in my heart on that day and for the rest of my life.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>All my love, your son Daniel</em>
</p><p>Daisy wiped her tears away so they didn’t stain the sheets of paper; how could she have ever thought this man would want to her and their daughter? She looked around the desk for a new sheet of paper. She took in a deep breath before she started to write a letter of her own.</p><p>
  <em>Dear Esme Sousa,</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Hi, this is Daisy, Daisy Johnson, Daniel’s fiancé. Forgive me if I start rambling, but I’m not used to writing letters, it’s not something that people really do in my time. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>I just needed you to know how much your son means to me. The day we met was one of the greatest days of my life, second only to the day Pippa was born. I love him, more than I ever thought I could love someone and the thought of us getting married and spending every day of the rest of our lives together makes me giddy in excitement.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>I read his letter to you, he offered for me to do so, and he mentioned the incident in the seventies. He didn’t go into much detail, but he saved my life that day. When he chose to stay, I had been tortured and experimented on and was left dangerously sick. He chose to stay to be there for me and since then has been the most amazing, supportive, and loving presence in my life. And I love him for that.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>I don’t really know to end this, again, not used to writing letters. But just know that I think he will be happy here with me and our daughter and I hope that this is enough for you.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Daisy</em>
</p><p>She put the pen down and picked up the photo, smiling slightly. In the photo, she was holding Pippa, who was less than an hour old, in her arms. Her hair was plastered to her sweaty forehead, she was red in the face and looked exhausted, but she was staring down at Pippa as if none of that mattered, and it didn’t. She was leaning against Sousa, who was sat next to her. He had one arm wrapped around her side as he looked at her and their daughter. The look of love on his face as he looked at the two of them made her heart melt.</p><p>“So, I see you read the letter,” Sousa said as he walked back into their bunk, still drying his hair off with a towel.</p><p>“I did. I even wrote one for her myself,” Daisy replied. She chewed the inside of her lip for a few moments. “Daniel…”</p><p>“Don’t.”</p><p>“What?”</p><p>“Don’t keep apologising about last night,” he replied.</p><p>“No, I need to,” Daisy insisted. She took in a deep breath before continuing. “What I said last night, what I accused you of planning to do, was truly awful. You have been nothing but dedicated to our daughter from the moment I told you I was pregnant and you’ve been there for me for the last two years. You did nothing to make me think that you were going to leave us, I just let my insecurities get the better of me and I hurt you; I’m sorry.”</p><p>“I love you.”</p><p>Daisy smiled softly at him. “I love you too.” She stood from the desk chair and made her way over to him. She pulled him close to her and kissed him. He went in to deepen the kiss but broke apart from her when they heard a noise come from Pippa’s cot. “I’ve got her,” Daisy said.</p><p>“I’ll sort out the letters and photo,” Sousa replied.</p><p>Daisy smiled at him once more before making her way over to Pippa. The small baby was fussing slightly in her cot. She picked Pippa up and the baby calmed almost immediately. “Oh, I see, you weren’t hungry, you just wanted Mommy to hold you.” She pressed a kiss to the top of Pippa’s head. “And I think I can work with that.”</p><p>***</p><p>Daisy was sat on a sofa a few feet away from where Peggy and Sousa were talking. The room was still mostly empty, the rest of the team still getting ready, so she couldn’t help but overhear their conversation.</p><p>“Can I ask a favour of you?” Sousa asked as he approached Peggy.</p><p>She raised an eyebrow at him. “Depends…”</p><p>“I was wondering if you could take this to my Mom,” Sousa said as he handed an envelope to her. “It’s a letter, so she knows that I’m alive and about Daisy and Pippa. Daisy wrote a letter as well and we put in a photo, one of us just after Pippa was born.”</p><p>“Are you listening in on them?”</p><p>Daisy looked over and saw Simmons slide onto the sofa next to her.</p><p>“I might be, so what if I am?”</p><p>“Well, you keep spying on them, I’m going to make some tea,” Simmons replied before heading off to the small kitchenette in the corner of the room.</p><p>Out of the corner of her eye, Daisy spotted Peggy and Sousa look in her direction.</p><p>“She seems happier than she did yesterday, she can’t wait for us to leave or something?” she teased.</p><p>“Nothing like that,” he replied in a slight laugh. “It’s just… sometimes you don’t realise how much hurt someone you love is holding out until fear forces it out.”</p><p>“That sounds serious, are you both going to be alright?” Peggy asked.</p><p>“We will be, we’ll get through this together,” Sousa replied. He looked over at Daisy and Pippa and she smiled at him. “To be with her and our daughter, I’d do anything. She’s worth the world.” He smiled slightly to himself.</p><p>“What is it?” Peggy asked.</p><p>“Just something Simmons said ages ago, about her being the stars in my skies,” he explained. “She was right.”</p><p>Daisy looked over at Simmons when she sat back down next to her. “They keep talking about me like I can’t hear them.”</p><p>“All good things I presume,” Simmons replied in a teasing tone as she handed Daisy a mug of tea.</p><p>Daisy rolled her eyes. “Obviously, I love him to death, but that man is such a dork.”</p><p>“He’s just making sure that she knows he won the breakup,” Simmons said.</p><p>Daisy let out a slight laugh. “Never thought the day would come when Jemma Simmons turned her back on Peggy Carter.”</p><p>Simmons shrugged. “And you’re better than Captain America.” She looked past Daisy and moved to the other end of the sofa.</p><p>“How are you?” Sousa asked as he sat down next to his fiancé. He nodded at Pippa. “Want me to take her so you can have your drink?”</p><p>“Thanks,” Daisy replied as she passed the baby over. “And I’m fine, thanks. How’d it go with Peggy?”</p><p>“Good,” he said. “She said she’d take the letter to my Mom.”</p><p>“I’m sorry that you can’t see her again,” Daisy said.</p><p>“You and Pippa are worth it,” he said. He had Pippa leaning against his chest and his head dropped down to press a kiss to the top of her head.</p><p>Daisy raised an eyebrow at him. “Are you sniffing the top of her head?”</p><p>“I like the new baby smell,” he confessed.</p><p>“It is intoxicating,” Simmons agreed from the other end of the sofa. “I think me and Fitz drove Enoch insane after Alya was born with how often he found us just sniffing the top of her head.”</p><p>Fitz walked into the room at that moment, Alya trailing behind him. Everyone else turned to look at them as they entered.</p><p>“The time drive is fully calibrated,” Fitz announced. He looked over Steve and Peggy. “We’re ready to take you home.”</p><p>***</p><p>“As nice as it has been to see you both, and to meet your little girl, hopefully, we won’t be seeing each other again,” Peggy said.</p><p>Daisy laughed loudly. “Agreed.” She reached over to hug Peggy, careful to not crush Pippa between them.</p><p>Peggy smiled down at the baby in Daisy’s arms. “And goodbye to you sweet girl.” She looked back up at Daisy. “I know you could here me and Daniel talking earlier. And he’s right.”</p><p>“About what?”</p><p>“That you’ll get through whatever this is together,” Peggy answered. “Seriously, I don’t think I’ve seen a couple more suited for each other since Ana and Mr Jarvis. You two are going to be fine. Better than fine, amazing.”</p><p>“Thank you,” Daisy replied. “That means a lot coming from you. You’re one of the only people I’ve ever know that knew him before we rescue-kidnapped him. And for you saying that… it makes me feel better about all of this, like I’m not going to mess it up.”</p><p>“You won’t mess it up,” Peggy said.</p><p>Sousa and Steve came over to join them.</p><p>“Well, this is it,” Steve said.</p><p>“We’re going to miss you, the both of you,” Sousa said.</p><p>“And we’ll miss you too,” Peggy replied. “Although, as I was just saying to your fiancée, hopefully, this will be the last time we see each other.”</p><p>Sousa let out a slight laugh. “Hopefully so. You look after the past for us.”</p><p>“And you look after the future,” Steve replied. He nodded towards Sam, Bucky and Wanda. “And keep an eye on those idiots for me.”</p><p>Daisy looked over her shoulder. Wanda, who had obviously heard what he said, flipped him off. Daisy snickered as she turned back. “We’ll do our best.”</p><p>May yelled at them from the Zephyr’s loading ramp.</p><p>“So, this is goodbye,” Steve said.</p><p>Peggy and Sousa, rather understandably, seemed the most upset at the prospect of leaving. Peggy pulled him in for one last hug. “Goodbye Daniel.”</p><p>“Goodbye Peggy.” Sousa wrapped one arm around Daisy as he watched them walk away, dropping a kiss to the top of her head.</p><p>Daisy smiled at the feeling and leant into his side. She let out a contented sigh, finally beginning to feel secure in the fact that he wasn’t going to leave her.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Letters From The Past</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This chapter should've gone up yesterday, but I got a little preoccupied with the gas leak we had at home...</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Mack arrived at Daisy and Sousa’s front door a few days later, a large box with an old version of the S.H.I.E.L.D. logo stamped on the side in his hands.</p><p>“Can I come in?” he asked.</p><p>Daisy stepped back and allowed him into the apartment. The two of them made their way into the living room where Sousa was sat on the sofa with Mochi curled up on his lap, reading a book. Pippa was asleep in her bassinet at the end of the sofa. He smiled when he saw Daisy and Mack but frowned at the sight of the box.</p><p>“Is something wrong?” he asked as he put his book down.</p><p>Daisy sat next to Sousa as Mack placed the box down on the coffee table and took a seat opposite. “You’re killing us Mack, what’s with the box?”</p><p>“Two days ago, I got a call from one of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s archives to say they had a box that had been hand-delivered by Director Carter in 1955 with instructions that it could not be opened until that day. It’s been sealed since then,” Mack explained. He lifted the lid of the wooden box to reveal a smaller cardboard box. “I brought straight here when I realised what it was.”</p><p>Daisy let out a slight gasp when she read the writing on the label on top of the box.</p><p>
  <em>For Daniel Sousa and Daisy Johnson.</em>
</p><p>“That’s… oh my god, that’s my Mom’s handwriting,” Sousa said, his voice shaking slightly.</p><p>Daisy grabbed his hand and squeezed it tightly in her own. “Thank you, Mack, for bringing this to us.”</p><p>Mack smiled at her. “It’s nothing. Besides, I don’t want to go against an order from Director Carter.” He took the smaller box out and placed it back on the coffee table before standing up, taking the wooden with him. “I’ll leave you guys with it.”</p><p>Daisy showed him out. “Thank you again,” she said they reached the front door.</p><p>Mack smiled at her. “I’ll see you later Tremors,” he said before leaving.</p><p>Daisy sighed slightly as she closed the door behind Mack. Sousa was still sat on the sofa staring at the box when she made her way back into the living room. “Babe?”</p><p>Sousa’s eyes snapped over to look at her. “Yeah?”</p><p>“You okay?” she asked.</p><p>“I… I don’t know how I feel right now,” he replied. He looked back at the box. “I didn’t think I’d ever hear anything from my Mom again after I sent that letter. But she gave this to Peggy, and Peggy made sure that this got to us… it’s just so surreal.”</p><p>“Do you want me to open it for you?” Daisy offered, noticing the slight shake in his hands. He nodded and shot her a grateful smile.</p><p>Daisy took in a deep breath and opened the box as she sat down next to him. The first thing she saw when she opened the box were two letters sat on top of a parcel wrapped in brown paper. One letter was addressed to Sousa, the other to her. She passed the letter for Sousa to him, before picking up the one addressed to her. She took in a deep breath before opening it.</p><p>
  <em>Dear Daisy,</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Your rambling is forgiven and thank you for your letter. It’s not that I didn’t believe my son when he said in his letter how much he loved you and how good the two of you were together, but hearing it come from you as well makes it easier to accept him not coming back. And as much as I miss my son, I am happy that he is staying with you. Not only because it means I did a good job raising him and teaching him to not abandon his family, but because I know that he will be happy there. And knowing that is more than enough for me. Take care of him for me.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>All my love, Esme Sousa</em>
</p><p>Daisy wiped away a few stray tears as she finished reading the letter. She looked over at Sousa and saw he was reading his letter as it was longer than hers. He put it down after a moment and reached for the box.</p><p>“She said there’s something in there for Pippa and something for us,” he said, his voice shaking slightly. He lifted out the parcel and began to carefully unwrap it. He pulled out a folded up piece of fabric. He shot a look at Daisy before he unfolded it. “Oh my god.”</p><p>Daisy looked over his shoulder and let out a slight gasp. The fabric was a patchwork quilted baby blanket, their daughter’s name loving embroidered in one corner. Daisy ran her fingers over the letters of Pippa’s name. She looked into the box and saw there was another, smaller, parcel in the bottom of the box. She reached in and pulled it out and was about to hand it to him when she noticed how much his hands were shaking. She placed grabbed his hand in her own and squeezed it tight.</p><p>“You okay?” she asked.</p><p>“This… it’s a lot,” he replied. He looked down at the smaller parcel. “Can you open it? I’m not sure I could right now.”</p><p>Daisy nodded and pulled back the paper on the small parcel. Inside were two small jewellery boxes. She opened the first and saw a pair of silver cufflinks. In the other was a pair of earrings, delicate teardrop-shaped blue jewels hanging down from them. From next to her, Sousa sucked in a breath.</p><p>“Those were my parents’,” he said. “My grandparents’, my Mom’s parent’s, they saved up for months to be able to buy those for their wedding. Those cufflinks were one of the few things of my Dad’s she kept after he died, she couldn’t cope with having the rest of his stuff around. And she just gave them to us.” He wiped a tear away from his eyes.</p><p>Daisy rubbed a hand on his back. She spotted a small note tucked into the box. She pulled it out and unfolded it.</p><p>
  <em>Something old and something blue.</em>
</p><p>“I think they’re wedding presents,” Daisy said. She cracked a small smile. “Seventy years in the past and she still managed to give us a wedding present.”</p><p>Sousa picked up his letter and handed it over to her. “Here.” Daisy tried to protest but he just shook his head. “You read the one I sent to her, and she says some really nice things about you. I think you should read it.”</p><p>Daisy nodded and passed her letter to him. “If I get to read yours, then you should read mine.” Sousa nodded and accepted the letter from her. Daisy unfolded the letter and started to read.</p><p>
  <em>Dear Daniel,</em>
</p><p>
  <em>I cannot put into words how happy I was to receive your letter. The last month since your funeral has been one of the hardest times of my life but knowing that you are okay and happy has made this easier for me. I can live my life in peace knowing that you are able to live yours as well. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>Your daughter is gorgeous, an absolutely adorable little girl. It was a slight shock when you told me that you and Daisy weren’t married, not even engaged, when Pippa was born. But if that is normal in your time, then I have no issues with it. All that matters to me that you are happy, and I will treasure that photo of the three of you. I made something for Pippa, something that I had always planned on making for your children. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>Daisy sounds like a lovely woman who you are very much in love with from the way you talk about her. And from the way she wrote about you, she clearly feels the same way about you. You sound perfect together and I couldn’t be happier for the two of you. As much as I shall miss you, I understand why you could never come back here, and I am happy that you found someone that made you feel that way.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>I love you, and my granddaughter and my soon to be daughter-in-law.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Your mother, Esme</em>
</p><p>
  <em>P.S. I put something in there for you and Daisy as well. I couldn’t just send Pippa a gift and forget the two of you, could I?</em>
</p><p>Daisy looked back over at Sousa as she finished reading the letter. He had already finished reading her letter and was now staring at the box on the table, his hands shaking slightly as a few stray tears trickled down his cheeks. She carefully placed the two letters on the coffee table and put the jewellery boxes on top before placing the blanket next to them. She reached over and grabbed his hands in her own.</p><p>“Are you okay?” she asked.</p><p>Sousa opened his mouth to answer before closing it and shaking his head. He hunched over slightly as he started full-on crying. Daisy slid closer to him and pulled him against her as his shoulders started shaking. She pressed a kiss to the top of his head as she hugged him close to her and rubbed his back.</p><p>“I’m sorry,” she said.</p><p>Sousa sat back up to look at her, tears still trailing down his cheeks. “Don’t be, I just didn’t realise how much I missed my Mom.”</p><p>Daisy smiled sadly and leaned in to kiss him softly. She let out a small sigh as she let him pull her back with him as he lay down on the sofa. She had one arm wrapped around him, the other stroking his hair as he held her close, his arms around her waist. She knew they’d need to talk about this later, how he had never been able to fully grieve the life he had left behind in 1955. But now wasn’t the time for that, for now, he just needed to cry.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Epilogue</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Me to the cat: I did it, I finally finished it<br/>Cat: *does the little squeak he does every time I talk to him*<br/>Me: yeah, hell yeah</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>Six months later</em>
</p><p>“Hey Peg, it’s great to see you again,” Sousa greeted. “Me and Daisy just wanted to thank you for what you did, getting those letters back to my Mom and making sure the letters and gifts got back to us.” He looked over at Daisy where she was stood next to him, hugging Pippa close to her. The baby was wrapped up in warm clothes and pressed against Daisy’s chest. She smiled reassuringly at him. “I don’t know what else to say.”</p><p>Daisy grasped his hand with her free one. “Like Daniel said, thank you for getting those letters back to her and hers back to us. And sorry that it took us so long to get out here and say that.” She pressed a kiss to Pippa’s forehead. “But this little girl hated even short quinjet flights when she was very young, so we gave her a few months to get used to it before we took her on a trip across the Atlantic.” Daisy shivered slightly as the cold British breeze cut under her jacket.</p><p>“Are you cold? Shall we go find somewhere inside?” Sousa asked.</p><p>“We don’t have to go yet if you don’t want to,” she replied.</p><p>Sousa shook his head. “We’ve both said what we need to say. Besides, we don’t want Pippa don’t get a cold again.”</p><p>Daisy let out a groan. “God, that was awful.”</p><p>Sousa shot her a smile before dropping her hand and taking a couple of steps forward to place the flowers, leaning them against Peggy’s gravestone. “I miss you Peg, we both do.” He stepped back and took Daisy’s hand again. He turned to look at her. “Let’s go get her inside.” The couple began to walk away, Sousa pulling her closer to him and wrapping one arm around her waist as they went.</p><p>***</p><p>
  <em>One year later</em>
</p><p>“You know, it’s okay to feel nervous,” Coulson said.</p><p>“Not really,” Daisy replied.</p><p>“She’s lying,” May said from where she was sat with Pippa a few feet away. “Empath, remember?”</p><p>Daisy rolled her eyes. “Fine, I’m a little nervous.  But I think I’m allowed to be, I’m getting married in like five minutes.”</p><p>May smiled at her. “You’re allowed to be nervous.” She stood and helped Pippa off her seat. “We’ll go find our seats.” She reached down to hold Pippa’s hand and tried to walk away but the little girl didn’t move.</p><p>“Up,” she demanded. May, who could never say no to her honorary granddaughter, picked the eighteen-month-old up and balanced her on her hip.</p><p>“We’ll see you in a few minutes,” May replied.</p><p>Pippa reached out and grabbed at her mother as they went past. May stopped for a moment and handed the toddler over to her mother. Daisy hugged Pippa close to her for a moment and pressed a kiss to the top of her head.</p><p>“I’ll see you soon,” Daisy promised. “Now, are you gonna go back to Grandma?”</p><p>Pippa nodded and allowed herself to be passed back over to May. May grinned at Daisy one last time as she took Pippa towards the doors of the room where they were having the wedding ceremony, Pippa looking over May’s shoulder and waving at Daisy as they went.</p><p>Simmons, who was Daisy’s maid of honour, walked past May and Pippa and towards Coulson and Daisy.</p><p>“They ready for us?” Coulson asked. Simmons nodded. Coulson held his arm out to Daisy. “You ready for this.”</p><p>Daisy linked her arm with his. “More than ready.”</p><p>Coulson grinned at her as they made their way towards the doors. Simmons opened the door and went down the aisle ahead of Coulson and Daisy, escorting Alya, the seven-year-old scattering petals as she went. Daisy smiled as she looked around the room at the guests. Wanda shot her a grin from where she was sat with Bucky and Sam. Kora was sat with Fitz, Mack and Yo-Yo at the front of the room. Mack was recording her as she walked down the aisle, much like he had been at Fitzsimmons’ wedding. May was sat next to them, Pippa sat on her lap. The little girl had been staring at her father but turned to wave at her mother again when she spotted her. Daisy grinned at her daughter and waved back at her. She turned to face forward again, and her heart skipped a beat when she saw Sousa.</p><p>He was dressed in a suit, much like when they first met. He smiled at her as she and Coulson approached. Coulson gave Daisy’s hand one last reassuring squeeze as she took her place next to Sousa and he went to sit with May.</p><p>“You look gorgeous,” Sousa said quietly to her as she looked away from Pippa.</p><p>“Says you,” Daisy teased, grinning at him. “You look amazing.” She reached out and held his hands in her own as the officiant started the ceremony, an excited smile on her face as they began this next stage in the lives, together.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>*runs back to Loving the Journey Together and Someone Revoke Their Internet Access after abandoning them both for weeks*</p><p>Also, follow me on <a href="https://puddle-of-awesomeness.tumblr.com">Tumblr</a></p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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